


Sound of Small Heartbeat

by spacego



Category: Royalty RPF
Genre: Gen, New Baby, past relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-12
Updated: 2013-08-12
Packaged: 2017-12-23 06:04:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/922867
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spacego/pseuds/spacego
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Past loves, new loves.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sound of Small Heartbeat

**Author's Note:**

> Just a day after the birth of a royal child...
> 
> (In this story, William once had a torrid love affair with Victoria of Sweden. Things became complicated and they separated ways... in a way).

The well-wishers have gone, finally! The baby has stopped fussing, and William can finally tuck his exhausted wife into bed. So beautiful and glowing and fragile, yet stronger than he ever thought possible. His heart swells with joy and love, he could cry all over again. 

The cellphone on the dresser vibrates and blinks. Another message; without seeing, he already knows what it will say. Congratulations on the baby, etc, etc. We hope the mother and baby are happy and continue to do well, etc, etc. Sparing a last look at the sleeping mother and child, he reluctantly reaches for the phone to reply.

It’s a foreign number not recognized by his phone book. But the two little digits that follow the plus sign tells him what he should know. The phone asks him whether he would like to reply. To his dying day, he’ll swear that he doesn’t know why he presses the call button instead. 

Three rings and a voice he knows very well answers. Her voice is cheerful as always, but there’s a hint of puzzlement underneath her “Hello.”

"I… I got your message," he tells her, moving across the room towards the door, hovers by it, unsure whether to leave or not. Doesn’t know why he feels guilty when there isn’t any reason. "Thanks," he follows it up, leaning against the door, watching the sleeping forms of the two most precious people in his world. 

"I saw the pictures. Amazing, huh? How does it feel, first time dad?" She chides and laughs. Through the phone, he hears a childish squeal and more laughter. 

“Amazing. I feel like I’ve been turned to mush and I can’t breathe and all I want to do is cry.”

She laughs again. A million years in the past, he would’ve flown to her side. This time, it’s just a warm feeling of friendship. “Yeah, Daniel can tell you. Actually I can tell you what he did in the delivery room, but he’ll deny it.” There’s a fondness in her voice followed by a comfortable silence. He imagines that Victoria is sharing a fond look with her husband. A little girl laugh breaks the moment again. He hears a scramble, a mad dash, a scrape of chair against parquet flooring.

"I still can’t believe I’m a dad," William tells her. He doesn’t know that his feet are already moving, walking towards his day-old son. Wanting to touch, never wanting to let go. 

"Believe it. You deserve it. This. All of it." She tells him fondly. Behind her, the little girl laughter gets louder, and a warm male voice floats behind it. "Names?" She asks.

He chuckles. “Sneaky Victoria. Nope. You’ll have to wait like everybody else.”

"A girl can try," she concedes gracefully, her laugh gaily and familiar. 

"Timid will never be one of your sins, that’s for sure." He puts the phone between his cheek and shoulder, gathers his baby boy in his arms, so small and so trusting. The boy sleeps, he sighs happily. "Say, how do you feel about being godmother?" 

"Huh?" 

"Sorry, it just came out." William blushes fiercely.

"Not gonna happen," Victoria tells him. "Not because I don’t want to, but that’s not tradition for you, is it? What will your family say? Bad boy. And even if it’s fine with the Crown, I… hmm.. what about…" Victoria seems to be at a loss of words. A short silence. She settles with a word instead. "Catherine?" Another pause. "I don’t… I don’t want to hurt her." They both know that sometimes poor Catherine wonders still. Not so much now, but in the past, the poor girl has been insecure enough. 

A shift of mattress, William turns his head slightly and watches his wife comes into wakefulness. The baby in his arm coos, and the mother instinctively reaches for the baby. Light filters through windows, low and warm and all-encompassing. William is filled with love all over again. 

A sudden clarity washes over him. If he can have his way, Victoria will be godmother. Not because of past loves or shared history, not because of not being able to let go. But because Victoria will be a good godmother. William believes he has grown up. Able to think objectively, rather than let his whims rule him. Objectively a good choice especially since she’s godmother to half of Europe, it seems. He remembers chiding her a lot about it. He knows her. Good, strong, dependable. Sane, respectful, steady. Protector. Friend. 

"Sorry," Victoria’s voice cuts through his contemplation. He doesn’t know why she feels like she has to apologize. Knows that she doesn’t have to. Tells her so. She accepts it with a low restrained voice. There’s silence again. This time, heavy like velvet over a hot clammy day. 

"You should sing to your son often, you know," Victoria’s voice sounds a bit farther than before. 

"Yeah?"

"Uh huh. Isn’t it right, Estelle?" Baby babblings stream through the phone’s speakers. "There," she tells him with finality, "My first godmotherly duty dispensed."

And just like that, the tension vanishes. Maybe not godmother on paper. Possibly not ever. But friends. Still. Despite everything. 

"Are you happy?" She asks. He imagines her sitting room, Scandinavian bright, her small daughter in her lap, her husband eavesdropping in the background ready to defend her honor.

William smiles. Gathers Kate in his arms, the baby between them, sweet-smelling and all kinds of awesome. He runs his fingers through Kate’s hair, impossibly soft with all those pregnancy hormones (according to the doctor anyway), Runs a finger on the baby’s apple red cheeks. “Yeah, very.” He surprises himself by how vehemently that comes out. How excruciatingly elated he is. The truth hits him like holy epiphany. “Very very very happy. I’m the happiest man on earth.”


End file.
